Senior aids troops

TICONDEROGA - Rachel Rafferty, a senior at Ticonderoga High School, recently spent time outside of a local store working on her senior project.

She studied America's current involvement in Afghanistan and decided to fundraise and collect goods to send to local servicemen and women who are stationed in Afghanistan.

As part of her awareness and donation campaign, Rafferty also offered ReMIND.org dog tags and information about the Bob Woodruff Foundation that helps returning veterans in their transition back to their families and life at home to her fellow students at school and to shoppers who stopped by her display.

Woodruff and his wife Lee are summer residents in Silver Bay.

Rafferty's efforts yielded 24 military boxes which she has mailed to five different units who have local service personnel in their ranks, including Tom Bush, John Burke and Robert Underwood who are serving in the Army and Chris Blasdell and James Cavanaugh who are Marines, all stationed in Afghanistan.

Rafferty raised over $300 to use toward purchases and mailing costs. She is also sending a donation of $250 to the Woodruff Foundation.

Senior projects are multi-disciplinary projects that have been required of all of Ticonderoga's seniors since 1990. Kim Powers and Bridget McCarthy currently run the program for THS.